((Author's Note)) Alright everybody, time to get the show on the road! I can't wait to present this chapter to you guys, so I'm Just gonna do it.
Chapter 26
"Aruki, It's time to eat."
Nishiko knelt in front of me with a bowl of soup and held out a spoonful toward my mouth. I just turned my head away, not wanting to eat.
By this time, my sanity was almost non -existant. I don't even feel the pain from the torture this woman put me through. The day I stopped screaming, she began to be nice to me; she untied me from the chains that bound me 24/7, put me in a room with a bed and blankets, amd gave me a clean set of clothes, consisting of a pair of grey sweatpants and a black and white striped sweater.
"Aruki, please," Nishiko begged as she tried feeding me again. I moved further away and curled into a crouched position in the nearest corner of the room and clung to the white shirt that had belonged to L. It was one of the only things linking me to the real world anymore...keeping me sane...keeping me alive.
Nishiko sighed and left the bowl on the table. "Fine then; it's here if you change your mind." She then left the cell, closing the door loudly and causing me to flinch from the loud noise. Instinctively, I reached for my collar and touched the cross holding the symbol of the truce I made with Mello almost a year ago...it seemed so much longer than that.
Huh? What's this? There was something hidden behind the cross. It felt like a small device of some sort. How did that get there? The device felt familiar to me, but I couldn't recognize why. Maybe if I got a good look at it... I slowly stood and walked over to the small mirror on the other side of the room, One hand brushed against the device while the other still clung to L's shirt. When I reached the mirror, I lifted my chin to get a good look at it, ignoring my frazzled appearance. It was the location device that Watari had given me back in Los Angeles. I had forgotten that I had it.
That didn't matter anymore, though. All that mattered now was getting out of this place. Without hesitation, I pressed the button on the device. A small light began to blink dimly, and a beeping noise sounded in a frequency almost too low for me to hear. Just a bit longer now, Yugi, I told myself. Just hold on a little bit longer.
Mello's Pov (3rd Person)
Mello was very suspicious of Light when he first joined the task force. He was able to deduce everything that L did almost the exact same way, not to mention he wouldn't stop staring at the girls that looked exactly like Yugi.
When L introduced everyone, he gave the girls, Near, Kani, Matt, and Mello aliases; Violet, Ruby, Kyle, Nick, Miles, and Morgan. Yeah...Mello was a grump for the rest of the day.
Fake names aside, L began to explain to Light what they had found on the Kira case so far, and for the past several weeks, Light had been posing as a "Fake" Kira to draw out the Second Kira. While they were doing that, Mello continued to search for any leads on Yugi's location. He was beginning to get frustrated.
Suddenly there was a loud crash, causing everyone to look up and see Light on the floor with Violet standing over him with a glare on her face.
"Quit staring at us," she growled at him. She then walked away, taking Ruby's hand and going into a different room.
Light sat up and rubbed his head in pain. "They're definitely not like Yugi, that's for sure."
"Indeed, you're right," L stated. "Equal ran several tests and genetically, they are almost exact copies. Other from the obvious differences, they have an unnatural advantage when it comes to physical strength and speed; and from the information we were able to get from Violet, we can properly deduce that the two of them are genetically modified clones, created by a woman named Nishiko Kuroka."
"Who is that?" Light asked.
"A woman who worked for Yugi's father. Just about as obsessed with her as he was," Equal stated with her arms crossed uncomfortably.
"She was also my rival when we were young; which would explain why she is using her to test me," L stated thoughtfully. "What I don't understand was why she created duplicates in the first place..."
"In case the original was killed." Mello turned to see Ruby, who had suddenly appeared behind L.
"Killed?" Kani looked scared when heard Ruby say that.
"Would you care to explain?" L asked.
Ruby nodded, but before she could say anything, Violet appeared behind her. "No. We're not suppose to say anything."
"But-"
"We can't," she told Ruby. Then she turned to L. "Please understand that we don't mean to withold information...It's just..."
Violet didn't need to say anything for L and the task force to understand. "Say no more," L told her. "I understand."
Mello went back to Yugi's computer and realized he had been going through her files. He noticed that he found the folder with all of her Yugioh fanfiction. Out of curiosity, he began to read one.
"Ryuzaki!" Watari spoke in a shocked voice. "I've just recieved a signal from Yugi's locator."
L glanced at Watari and he showed him the computer screen. Mello looked as well.
"It's here?" he asked out loud.
"But how?" Matt wondered.
"I can answer that." It was Kani that piped up.
Equal looked shocked. "Kyle?"
Kani nodded. "Once it was revealed that it was Nishiko Kuroka that kidnapped Yugi, I did a bit of research and found out that her husband, Taketo Kuroka, is the owner of this hotel."
"And that is precisely why I had Watari prepare a room here," L stated. Equal turned on him instantly.
"You knew about this the whole time?!" she demanded, "And you never bothered to go after her?! Ryuzaki, my daughter was kidnapped, and knowing Nishiko-"
"I know where she's keeping her," Ruby interrupted quietly. Before she could say anything else, Violet stopped her.
"Aya, don't!" She begged. "If she finds out you said something..."
"I don't care!" Ruby snapped. "That woman can kill me if she wants, but I ain't keeping my mouth shut any longer! Not when she's doing such horrible things to someone who I consider family."
Ruby then walked up to Mello and held out her hand. "Come on, I'll take you to her."
~*TimeSkip*~
Mello glanced at the door uncertainly. "And you're sure this is the way in?" He looked at Ruby, who nodded. "Ruby, it's a girl's toilet!"
"I know," Ruby stated. "And stop calling me that! My name is Ayata."
"Not to be mean or anything," Matt said, "but L gave you an alias to protect you from Kira."
Ayata rolled her eyes. "You guys are weird. I don't believe in fake names. It's just another way for people to lie." She then opened the bathroom stall and pulled the three boys inside. The stall was labled handicapped, so there was plenty of room. Once they were inside, she locked the stall door. "Pull that Baby changing station off the wall," she told Mello.
He did so, with Matt's help. Behind it was an electrical pannel. "Holy sh-"
"Language, Morgan!" Ayata scolded, one of her pink wolf ears twitching as she walked up to the panel. "Honestly, don't you have any manners?"
Mello glared, he was about to shout at the girl, but he could only mutter, "It's Mello."
Ayata glanced at him it the way he was familiar with getting from Yugi. "I think I prefer Morgan."
Of course she would, Mello thought, rolling his eyes. Ayata opened the pannel and pressed several swiches. A part of the wall opened up and the toilet moved behind it showing a manhole with a ladder leading down into a dark tunnel.
"Nishiko has an entire network of tunnels underneath this part of the city," Ayata explained. "It's practically a labrynth for those unfamiliar with it."
"At least we have a special little Peony to lead our way," Matt nearly swooned. Mello had to keep himself from rolling his eyes. It was a bit obvious that Matt was getting a crush on the red haired clone. Mello thought it was ridiculous.
Ayata rolled her eyes and jumped down the hole. "You boys coming or what?"
Matt looked at Mello in shock. Mello just shrugged and climbed down the ladder to catch up with the red head.
Don't worry, Yugi. Mello thought as Matt followed him into the darkness. We're coming.
"It's this way," Ayata whispered, leading the boys through the tunnels.
Mello looked around, although it was rather pointless. The only light came from extremely dim bulbs that hung on the ceiling, giving the environment a spooky vibe. The floor was wet and the group's footsteps echoed softly through the cement walls. "Tell me again what the purpose of these tunnels were again," Mello said.
"When Taketo first had the building erected, he also had these tunnels dug for Nishiko. He would do anything to make her happy. I've never met him, but I'm certain he's a nice guy...Nishiko is just using him for her own personal gain."
"So, she practically made him build these tunnels for her without a second thought to why she wanted a sort of secret lair?" Matt guessed, "That poor guy is whipped hard!"
"Yeah..." Ayata stopped for a moment. "...Choo!" she sneezed. Matt instantly pushed passed Mello.
"If you're catching a cold, I found a whole bunch of remedies online that can help," he said. "for instance, I got these hypo-allergenic tissues, as well as some very soothing candles and bath salts that not only clear your sinuses, but smell really great." As he spoke, he seemed to produce the items out of thin air and put them into Ayata's hands. "Oh, and I also found that a concoction of cinnamon and honey-"
"Matt," Ayata interrupted, "Where did all this come from?"
Matt shrugged. "Some crazy person obsessed with plants told me to say that and give those to you should you ever sneeze while we were in a poorly lit tunnel leading to a friend that was kidnapped by a psycho lady bent on destroying the face of L or something like that. Why do you ask?"
Ayata didn't say anything as she dropped the items onto the ground and gave a very confused look to Matt. "A crazy person obsessed with plants? How long ago was that?"
Matt glanced at his watch. "Just before we came in here."
"But we were with you the whole time," Mello stated. "We didn't see anyone."
"Was that why you were talking to yourself earlier?" Ayata asked.
It was now Matt's turn to give a very confused look. "When was I talking to myself?"
Ayata glanced at Mello awkwardly. "Ehm...nevermind. Let's just get going. I don't want to be here any longer than I have to. I'll go nuts."
"Claustrophobic?" Mello asked, as they began to walk again.
"Yeah, how'd you know?"
Mello blushed. "...Yugi."
"Oh, right," Ayata said. She looked at his face, which seemed slightly saddened. "You like her, don't you?"
Mello nodded. "Yeah...but I think she likes someone else."
"Why? Just because Ryuzaki told you that he told Light that she was his girlfriend?" Ayata asked. "He only told him that to get under his skin. Light also has a thing for Yugi, that's pretty obvious, but if he is indeed Kira, then he might try to seduce her to get to L. It may not seem effective; in fact it seems cruel, but the only people standing in the way of Kira getting his name are the Second Kira and Yugi. L is already tracking down the Second Kira, so that takes care of one. The only way Kira can't get to L is if he keeps those who know his identety away from those he suspect, like Light."
"I know that!" Mello yelled. "And I know that isn't the main reason he said that!"
Ayata looked shocked at the blonde. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, I know about the heat cycles," Mello stated. "When Yugi first appeared at Wammy's, the entire faculty was informed. I happpened to listen in on the meeting concerning her increasing heat cycles."
"Then you understand why L is claiming responsibility," Ayata guessed.
"L was the only person in the original task force that she trusted. If there happened to be a spike in her cycle, he would be the only person she would ask for help from."
"Exactly."
"How do you know so much?" Mello couldn't help but wonder.
"While a lot of our memories are fake, being a clone gave us several of Yugi's memories as well," Ayata explained. "It makes us more...connected." She stopped walking again, her ears perked up at a sound neither Mello nor Matt could hear. "We're almost there. We need to stay silent now."
The boys nodded and the trio silently moved forward. As they did, the lighting slowly improved until it was so bright they had to stop to let their eyes adjust. Once they could see again, what they saw was shocking.
((Author's Note)) Whelp, that does it for this chapter. I hope you enjoyed.
Okay, so I have an announcement to make. On friday, October 21st and Saturday, October 22nd, I will be attending the ComicCon in Grand Rapids, Michigan with a friend. This will be my first time going to one and I'm very excited. I am telling you guys this, because I think it would be cool to meet people in that area who enjoy this story. I will be cosplaying those days, too and I took selfies of myself in Costume. The links are on my profile so I hope you at least check that out and let me know what you guys think.
Until Next Time...
-Garden